Summer Borscht with Beans

Place dry beans in the bowl, add 1 ½ cups of water and leave them to soak for 5-8 hours. Transfer the beans with water into a pot and cook until soft and ready. Add salt 5-10 minutes before beans are done. Strain the beans.

Place beef bones into a deep pot and cover with cold water. Turn the heat on for low and slowly bring to a simmer. Remove any foam that starts to appear on the surface. Simmer the bone broth on low for 4-5 hours. Add salt 30 minutes before the broth is done. After the broth is done, strain it to get rid of bone pieces and other unwanted bits.

Cut the greens off the beets and separate leaves from stems. Cut the stems into small cubes and boil for 7-10 minutes. Cut the leaves into strips.

Cut your carrots into long strips and onions into half circles. Heat oil on the skillet and cook the vegetables on medium heat until onion becomes transparent.

Bring to broth back to a boil. Place your fried vegetables, cubed potatoes, beetroot greens and cut parsley root in the pot. Cook everything for 25 minutes. Then add boiled beetroot stems, cut tomatoes or tomato puree, cubed bell peppers and zucchini, beans, sugar, vinegar and bay leaf. Taste for salt and add more if needed. Cook for 10 more minutes and turn the heat off.

When serving the borscht, add sour cream and chopped parsley and dill into the bowls.

You will need:

For broth:

Water – 10 cups

Beef bones – 18 oz

Salt – 1 ½ teaspoon

For borscht:

Beetroot greens – 16 oz

2 medium potatoes

⅔ cups of beans

1 carrot

1 parsley root

1 yellow onion OR

1 leek

2 small zucchinis

1 bell pepper

2 tomatoes OR

Tomato puree – 3 tablespoons

Oil – 2 tablespoons

Sugar – 2 teaspoons

Vinegar – 2 teaspoons

2 bay leaves

Salt – to taste

To serve:

Sour cream

Chopped parsley

Chopped dill

Options:

You can use water instead of bone broth to cook this borscht. In this case, you will need 6 cups of water.